In your corner (fixed)
by awildmelmel
Summary: Shinsou gets some unexpected help when he's trying to transfer into the hero course. Takes place right after the Overhaul arch and this is a rewrite of a story I literally just wrote.
1. 1

so i put an update on the original saying that i didnt like Norikos quirk so i was changing it. the first couple of chapters are pretty much the same, just tweak a bit. sorry for any confusion or inconvenience

Shinsou trailed behind his teacher to their normal training spot, expecting to get kicked around for a few hours by Aizawa. As they got closer he could see someone stretching, as if they were about to work out.

"Uh sensei, I think someone's trying to crash our spot"

Aizawa just shrugged and kept moving forward. Hitoshi let the conversation die. His teachers lack of response spoke for itself. The mystery person was ment to be there; Shinsou just didn't know why.

From the look of it their guest was a girl,a small one at that. It may have just been the distance but she barely looked 5 foot. Her hair flowed down her back like a waterfall made of bubblegum. The aspiring hero instantly thought of the acid girl in 1-A, but quickly remembered her hair was short and the girl they were nearing didn't have pink skin.

As if she could feel Shinsous gaze she perked up and turned to greet them.

"Hello Aizawa-sensei, hello Shinsou-kun." She said with a little wave and a level voice. Up close Hitoshi could definitely verify her height. With her long hair and big silver eyes she almost looked like a fairy.

"Shinsou, this is Noriko Gamatsuchi from class 2-B. She's here to help you get into the hero course. " Aizawa gestured towards the 2nd year with a lazy pass of his hand.

"As you know things have been pretty hectic on my end and I don't want my other responsibilities to be the reason you don't get transferred. "

Shinsou understood where Aizawa was coming from. 4 students in the hospital and a little girl that couldn't control a deadly quirk. That was a lot for anyone to deal with, let alone someone who already spread himself so thin.

His teacher didn't wait for a reply. "That's why I've asked miss Gamatsuchi to help out."

"I understand why you asked for someone to fill in, but... Uh wh-No, I mea-"

"I already told you Shinsou, it's alright to ask questions. You won't get in trouble. " Aizawa cut in, putting an end to the boys inner conflict. "I assume that you were going to ask why I chose another student, or why her specifically."

Hitoshi nodded and looked to the girl in front of him. To be honest she didn't look like she could hold her own in a fight, he was pretty sure he could toss her over his shoulder without breaking a sweat. Whatever his teacher had planned was a mystery to him.

Noriko stayed quiet, but her neutral face shifted into a small frown.

"Well there's a few reasons. If you don't recognize her I can safely say you haven't went back and watched the sports festival for the other grades."

The young hero looked away from his teacher and down at his shoes.

"No, I haven't had time."

Which wasn't a lie. Aizawa approached him soon after the festival and from then on it's been non stop training.

The erasure hero just shrugged. "I'm not upset, I know I keep you on a tight schedule. I'll just spoil the end for you and say who won by a landslide. "

Shinsous eyes shot up to the 2nd year. "You were first place in second year?" He winced as soon as the question left his lips. Hitoshi knew that his teacher was alright with him asking questions, but he wasn't sure how the girl in front of him would take it. Especially somewhat rude questions.

Her little pout turned into a small smile. "Yeah, I took first this year, and second last year."

As soon as she said how she placed in the previous year everything stated to click for Shinsou. He remembered her fight and how she broke a guys jaw with a mean looking kick. Norikos hand to hand skills came rushing back to him.

"Ok, so I get why you wanted her to teach me hand to hand. But I still don't understand why you chose a student instead of a teacher."

His teacher raised an eyebrow. "Shes capable of more that just knocking you around, Noriko is also the top of her class in the hero curriculum courses. She can help you train and study."

"More over, I don't think the other teachers would benefit you much. Most of them have physical quirks and the hero life came to them with out that many oppsticals."

Shinsou thought for a moment and realized he couldn't think of the other students quirk. He couldn't recall her using it much ,if at all during her first sports festival.

Aizawa saw the confusion in his students eyes and continued.

"Noriko has a physical quirk, but she knows how to fight for what she wants. I trust her with this and she agreed to help you."

Hitoshi looked from his teacher to his schoolmate. Aizawa looked run down as usual, but he also looked confident. Like he knew this would work. And Noriko...she looked passive to the whole situation. At first it seemed like she didn't care to be here, but her face was calm and patient. The choice to train with her was Hitoshis, and she didn't want to sway him either way.

The tired teen huffed and bowed to his new tutor. "Thank you for helping me, Gamatsuchi-san."

"Just Noriko is fine." She finally let a full smile creep on to her face. "I look forward to working with you Shinsou-kun."

Training for that day was mostly the three of them talking about Shinsous week points and how to correct them. Noriko went back and forth between the 2 men, trying to sort out her role in all this.

After about an hour it was decided that Aizawa would train Hitoshi on Monday and Friday, while Noriko would fill in the rest of the days, as well as studying on Saturday.

The more Shinsou thought about it he realized that he would be taking up a lot of the second years time. If he remembered correctly, most students in their 2nd and 3rd year had internships.

"Um, Noriko..." The young hero turned to Shinsou, giving him her full attention.

"Well...uh..I don't-I mean..." He turned to his teacher, hoping he would understand his current problem .

Aizawa seemed to connect the dots well enough, and stepped in for his student.

"As you probably know Shinsou can activate his quirk by asking a question and getting a verbal response. I'm assuming he wants to know if your comfortable with him asking you questions. "

The look the other student gave him was full of confusion and pity. Shinsou hated it.

"Of course you can ask questions. Who tells you that you can't?"

"Dont pry into people's personal lives, Gamatsuchi." Their teacher intervened.

"Right, sorry. So was there a question you wanted to ask?"

Relieved he didn't have to share his backstory, he continued with his initial thought.

"Dont you have an internship? Wouldn't training me get in the way of that?"

"I do, but my boss is about to have a baby so we've mostly been doing private security gigs." She said, tucking her hair behind her ear. "That and I kinda had an incident, so my family wants me to take it down a notch for a while. "

"Incident?"

Noriko lifted up her shirt to reveal a long scar across her stomach. "My team ran into some pretty nasty villains. One pulled a knife on me and my mom freaked out. "

She was so casual about it Hitoshi couldn't help but laugh. "I bet she did."

The second year let her shirt drop as she laughed along.

"All joking aside, these things do happen. Is that something you can cope with?" Aizawa asked.

Hitoshi knew this. He knew that with his type of quirk that he would likely die in the line of duty. Knowing that never stopped him from applying to UA, and it won't stop him from joining the hero course.

He just shrugged and gave his teacher a cocky grin.

"I think I can handle it. "

The next time Hitoshi saw Noriko was around noon on Tuesday. The 2nd year stood outside the gen ed classroom waiting for Shinsou to notice.

Unfortunately, the 1st year was to absorbed in his homework and wouldnt look up from his textbook. She remembered that Aizawa said he was kind of a private guy and would rather not have his entire class knowing his business, but lunch was over soon and she really needed to know when and where he wanted to meet up.

Finally reaching her 'fuck it' point she strolled into the room and made her way past the other students. The kids looked at her with confusion, and it only got worse when she stood in front of Hitoshis desk.

"Hey Shinsou-kun. "

The purple haired boys head shot up at the sound of his name. His eyes went wide at the sight of his new mentor.

"Hey Gamatsuchi. Uhh... What- I mean…I dont know why you're here."

"Well I came to get your number, so we can meet up later." The second year tucked some of her bubble gum hair behind her ear. "And I told you to call me Noriko."

"Right. Sorry." He looked down, trying to avoid the 2nd years gaze.

She just shrugged and held out her hand, making a 'gimme' motion. "Phone. I'll put my number in it."

Hitoshi nodded and dug his phone out of his backpack. He didnt really have a lot of friends to text, so he alway kept it in his bag. He also didn't like the looks he got from his classmates when they saw he still used a flip phone. Of course the young hero would love to have a smart phone, but right now he was just lucky to have a phone at all.

Noriko snatched the beat-up flip phone out of Shinsous hand and typed away quickly. Once she was done, she handed the phone back to Hitoshi, letting her hand linger longer than necessary.

"Text me later, ok?" The second year was already walking towards the door. "Bye Shinsou-kun. "

The rest of the classes eyes went back and forth from the unlikely pair, full of curiosity and confusion. Thankfully no one tried to bring it up with Shinsou. Once the other first years stopped gawking and went back to their own conversations, the tired teen opened his contacts and looked at the newest entry.

Noriko

"Don't try to pull you're punches. You gotta treat this just like a real fight…Wait, scratch that. Don't pull you're punches, unless it's the face. I do NOT want a broken nose." Noriko rambled as she stretched. Her cotton candy hair was swept up in a pony tail, and she was in her school gym uniform.

"Got it." Hitoshi said as he stretched his arm over his head.

"I'm gonna start out on defense, so just try to take me down."

The first year only nodded and they got into position. Sparing wasnt as horrible as Shinsou initially thought. He ended up on the ground more times than he could count, but he did manage to take Noriko down once or twice. Although she was smaller that Aizawa it didnt make fighting her any easier. Noriko was a small target, but she was faster than anyone Shinsou has ever fought. She also knows when and where to strike. Like a snake backed into a corner.

The two students were wrapping up their first session. Mostly Gamatsuchi telling him where he went wrong, and giving him tips on how to do better.

"You never tried to use your quirk. Why?" The second year questioned, causing Shisou to nearly drop his water bottle.

"Well… I wasnt sure if you would be comfortable with that." He answered honestly. It's his greatest strength, but he doesn't want to scare his new mentor away after their first session. "Its not something people like happening to them."

"The whole point of me working with you is to make you a better hero. Great heroes usually use their quirks. "

Hitoshi didnt say anything back. Since he was a child everyone hated him for his quirk, and it was exhausting.

Noriko sighed. "Like I said, as long as I dont get a broken nose it's fine. When fights become life or death you gotta use everything you have." Her hand dropped her stomach, tracing the scar through her shirt.

Shinsou hesitated for a moment, but curiosity got the better of him. "Is that… how you got that scar?"

He knows its rude to pry, and hes still a little nervous asking questions without his teacher present; but Noriko just smiled.

"That's the first question you asked me by yourself." Her face went pink and she tucked a strand of hair that fell out of her ponytail behind her ear. Hitoshi was starting to think it was a nervous tick.

"My quirk is… well it's… it's not something I ever want to use." She bit her bottom lip. "I have a hard time controlling it."

"What is your quirk?" Hitoshi asked. He tried to think of a time where Noriko or Aizawa ever mentioned it and he was coming up blank.

Noriko looked down at her shoes.

"I'd rather not say." She mumbled. "Not a lot of people have seen me use it, and it usually ends up pretty bloody when I do."

"Everything happened so fast. They started taking hostages- KIDS- and when one of them pulled out a knife I panicked... and… I never realized I got cut until after I woke up in the hospital. "

Shinsou gently wrapped his arms around the older girl and pulled her in close.

"Anyone would be freaked out in that situation, but you helped save those kids. You threw yourself into a fight because your a hero. I would have done the same thing."

The pink haired hero looked up to meet Hitoshis gaze. Her eyes were a bit teary, but the smile on her face was mischievous. "Big words from a guy who got pinned 18 times in a row."

A grin made it's way to Shinsous face. "Were done being sappy already?"

"Afraid so." She sniffled and wiped her eyes. "But really, thank you Shinsou-kun."

"Call me Hitoshi. Might as well drop the formalities if you're gonna keep kicking my ass 4 days a week." He said as he pulled back.

Noriko laughed, and it was music to Hitoshis ears. He would have to try and make her laugh more often. Her smile went from teasing to warm and bright.

"Alright, Hitoshi." She peeked up at him through her long rose colored lashes. "I'll see you tomorrow. "

Noriko started off in the direction of the second year dorms, and gave a little wave over her shoulder. Hitoshi didn't walk away at first. He just watched his mentor leave. With every sway of her hips or bounce of her ponytail he felt a strange flip-flop in his stomach.

"This is bad."


	2. 2

Thursday was a great day. Hitoshi got 6 solid hours of sleep, aced his pop quiz in English, and found the one thing he was better at than Noriko.

Running.

Shinsou was pretty tall and had long legs, perfect for long strides. Noriko on the other hand… It took all she had to keep up with the younger teen. At one point Hitoshi tried to slow his pace so his mentor could run at his side, but that earned him a very dirty look.

"What's the matter Noriko? Can't keep up?" He huffed with a shit eating grin plastered on his face.

It looked like she was trying to wheeze out a response, but gave up and flipped him off.

"Senpai! How could you use such vulgar hand signs? And in front of a first year." Hitoshi said mock astonishment. He spun around and started jogging backwards. "What would sensei say?"

"He'd say you're being a cocky little shit." She coughed out. "Don't forget I knocked you out cold yesterday. "

Ouch. Right in the pride.

"I was only out for 12 minutes." He spun back around and came to a stop in front of a bench. "I was up before Recovery Girl got there."

Noriko placed a hand on his shoulder to hold herself up while she struggled to giggle and gasp at the same time. Once she caught her breath she let go of Shinsou.

He tried not to think about how much he missed the warmth of her hand .

" I think you've been kicked around enough for one week. How 'bout we hit the weight room? There usually isn't that many people in there around this time." She didn't wait for a reply and started walking towards the gym.

Once the two aspiring heroes got settled with their headphones and gym equipment they got right to work. Hitoshi has come a long way since the sports festival. Before he was pretty average at most physical tasks, but now he was starting to notice a change. He could bench more weight than he thought possible for himself, he didn't struggle to keep up with Aizawa sensei anymore, and he bulked up so much he needed new shirts.

Shinsou was pretty focused on his own work out, but he glanced over at his mentor. She was just as sweaty as he was and looked like she was having a bit of a hard time. His eyes shifted from Noriko to the weight she was lifting and he froze.

"Uh…Noriko?"

"Yeah?" She huffed.

"How much weight is that?"

"About 450."

"Ok, one more question. HOW CAN YOU LIFT OVER 400 POUNDS?!" Hitoshi abandoned his machine and went over to the other student.

"My quirk makes me pretty strong. Not like All Might strong, but I can shatter bulletproof glass no problem. "

"Huh." Hitoshi was speechless. He just spent the last week sparring with a girl that could BREAK him.

"That's why I mostly try to knock you down instead of throwing punches. Can't have you blacking out every time we spar."

"Ugh, you're never going to let me live that down are you?" He groaned.

"Never." She giggled.

"So are one of your parents crazy strong?" Hitoshi asked as he leaned over his mentor. He didn't really remember his parents, but he was pretty sure he inherited his quirk from his mother. He wasn't completely sure, his parents died before he got his quirk so it's not like either of them taught him how to use it.

The second year nodded. "My dad was."

"Was?" He frowned.

"Have you ever heard of the hero Rampage?"

Shinsou thought for a moment. The name did sound sort of familiar. "I think so."

"He was my dad. He died about 10 years ago. "

"I'm sorry. I know it sucks to lose a parent. " He tried to sound comforting.

It was Norikos turn to look confused. "You too?"

"Yeah." The purple haired boy rubbed the back of his neck, trying to make the situation seem less awkward. "Both of them. They weren't heroes or anything, it was just a car crash."

He never liked telling people about his situation. They alway treated him weird afterwards, but Noriko went through something similar so she might not make it uncomfortable.

The older teen stood up from the equipment and placed a hand on Hitoshis should. She gave him a little squeeze before letting out a sigh.

"I know our situations are a little different, but if you ever need to talk to someone about this kind of stuff, or anything really, you can talk to me."

Hitoshi smiled. "Thanks Noriko. "

She patted the purple haired hero on the back and started to collect her things.

"Let's call it quits. I promised some girls from my class that I would make them dinner."

"You can break jaws and cook. You're the complete package. " Shinsou teased.

"Ha ha. Jokes on you, I'm actually a good cook." Noriko huffed. "If you're nicer to me I might make you something one day."

"Then from now on I'll be on my best behavior." He said as he matched his pace with his tutor. Hitoshi knew that their walk together would only last a few minutes, but he didn't want to waste a second of it.

"So how was training with Gamatsuchi?" Aizawa asked while he watched his student struggle to free himself.

"Well she knocked me out the other day, but it's going better than weapon training. " Shinsou huffed out. He was tangled up in his capture weapon.

Hitoshi was doing a lot better than he was giving himself credit for. Sure he still had his little mishaps, but he was making progress faster than Aizawa thought possible. The kid was a natural.

"I figured that would happen eventually. If shes anything like Rampage, she'll have a mean right hook."

Shinsou paused his squirming. " Wait… You knew her dad?"

Aizawa nodded. He approached his struggling student and started to help him get free.

"Yes I did. He and I worked at the same agency when I first started out. That's why I chose Gamatsuchi to help you."

"Because you knew her dad?"

"I knew her. I used to work closely with Rampage, so I met his family a few times. His wife and I still stay in contact. "

"So you've know Noriko before she even went to UA." Hitoshi frowned.

"Its not like we were buddies. I met her few times when she was a kid and I would check in with her mother after Genji passed. " Aizawa explained just as he freed the young hero.

Hitoshi got to his feet and brushed the dirt off his pants. It was weird learning about his teachers past. Aizawa was usually a very private man, but every now and then the young hero would learn something new about his mentor.

"Was she always like this?"

"Like what?" His teacher frowned.

Shinsou shrugged as a dopey grin made it's way to his face. "You know, shes super nice and really funny. Was she always like that, or was she a shy kid."

"I'm starting to think this pair up was a bad idea." Aizawas frown deepened.

"What? I was just curious. I'm just being nosey, that's it." The purple haired hero defended.

"Then you should wipe that grin off your face. If I didnt think Gamatsuchi was so level headed I would start reading into things."

"Relax sensei, there's nothing to read into." Hitoshi assured his teacher, but then he kept thinking. He liked the way Noriko talked… and laughed...and smiled…

This is bad.

"This is bad, this is bad, this is SO BAD." Hitoshi muttered to himself as he paced his dorm room.

He kept thinking about the stupid butterflies he felt when he was with Noriko. It wasnt like she was the first girl Hitoshi found attractive. Throughout middle school and even at UA he thought some of his classmates were cute. But thanks to his quirk and lack of social skills that's where it usually stops. He doesn't get to know them, they always stay cute girls with nothing else to pull him in.

Noriko is more that just some cute girl he passes in the hall. She is strong, brave, silly, and pretty. A dangerous combination. And to top it all off shes nice to him. She doesn't tense up whenever he asks a question. Never said that stupid 'just dont use your quirk on me' line.

And now even Aizawa sensei noticed his stupid crush.

If he could talk it out it might not be so bad, but he really doesn't have any close friends. His classmates are nice, but there was no way he was going to any of them for relationship advice. Aizawa was out too. That would just be awkward. Plus he would just say that relationships are a a distraction.

Did he even want to be in a relationship?

Sure he likes Noriko, but it WOULD be a distraction. On the other hand, training with your girlfriend would be nice….NOPE! Cant start thinking like that or else he'll act like an idiot around her.

"Just keep it together. It's not a big deal, people get crushes all the time. Just ignore it." Hitoshi told himself as he flopped on his bed. "Ignore it."

His phone went off above his head. He checked who it was from.

"Fuck."

Noriko sent him a text.

Noriko: Heyyy -!!!!! Are we still studying tomorrow???

Oh no. Shinsou completed forgot he was supposed to study with Noriko on Saturday.

Hitoshi: yeah

Well that was lame. He really needed to pull it together. Maybe if he went for a run it would clear his mind. The gen ed student put on his shoes and slipped out of the dorms. It was getting late, the sun was starting to set, but Hitoshi didn't care. He needed to get out.

Halfway through his his run he saw a familiar green haired hero.

Midoriya noticed Shinsou and made his way towards the other student.

"Hey Shinsou! I don't usually see you out jogging this time of day."

"Yeah, I'm usually doing homework now." Hitoshi slowed his pace so it was easier to hold a conversation.

Midoriya nodded. "So what brings you out here then?"

Could Hitoshi talk about this with Midoriya? He liked the kid, and he was pretty nice. It couldn't hurt to try.

"Well… I'm having girl trouble. "

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Midoriya stumbled. So maybe this was a bad idea.

"Oh uh, it makes sense that you can't focus on school work then."

"We don't have to talk about it." Hitoshi chuckled.

"NO! IT'S OK! I was just surprised is all." The green haired teen composed himself. "So what's stopping you from asking her out?"

"For starters shes a second year, and shes in the hero course. She could do a lot better than me."

"That's not true! You're amazing! And if she acted like she was better than you, you wouldn't like her."

"Huh…that's a good point…" Hitoshi slowed to a stop. "But wouldn't having a girlfriend be kinda distracting?"

Midoriya was deep in thought, afraid to say the wrong thing.

"Well that's true, but I'm sure there are other couples at school. It can't be impossible to balance everything out."

"Thanks Midoriya. This talk was actually helpful. " Shinsou smiled at his unexpected confidant.

"No problem! I'm happy to help Shinsou. "

**Again im sorry for the garbage person i am.**


End file.
